


If I die before I wake

by brilliantbanshee



Category: 9-1-1: Lone Star (TV 2020)
Genre: Car Accidents, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Happy Ending, Hurt TK Strand, Hurt/Comfort, Idiots in Love, M/M, Mya is back bitches!, Worried Carlos Reyes (9-1-1 Lone Star), the boys are being soft again
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-12
Updated: 2021-01-12
Packaged: 2021-03-17 06:54:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,053
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28720824
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brilliantbanshee/pseuds/brilliantbanshee
Summary: Prompt:  “stay alive, please.” +  “it hurts.”--Carlos responds to an accident scene that threatens to take everything away from him.
Relationships: Carlos Reyes/TK Strand
Comments: 20
Kudos: 286
Collections: 9-1-1 Lone Star ▶ Carlos Reyes / Tyler Kennedy "TK" Strand





	If I die before I wake

**Author's Note:**

> For the lovely [Jill](https://rafaelsilva.tumblr.com/) on her birthday! I realize you requested this prompt from me literally months ago, but I hope you'll still enjoy it anyway!
> 
> Title from "Mansion Door" by Shakey Graves

“So, what do you think?” 

Carlos looked at his partner, eyebrow raised, “What do I think about going on a double date?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Me and TK, with you and…” 

“Alanna,” Mya provided. 

“Right, Alanna. Who you have been on...2 dates with?” 

“Three, Reyes. Three dates.” 

“Uh-huh.” 

Mya shot him a glare, “What?” 

“I think you’re up to something, Esquilin.” 

“What could I possibly be up to?” 

“I don’t know, but I have known you long enough to know that you are usually up to something.” 

“You,” Mya said with an accusatory finger pointed at her partner, “are too suspicious, Reyes.” 

“Mya,” Carlos said firmly, turning to face her, “what possible reason could you have for wanting to take someone you have been on 3 dates with for a double date with a couple that has been together over a year and knows you so well? There’s an ulterior motive here somewhere and I’m just wondering what it is.” 

There is silence in their squad car for several moments as Mya seems to consider how best to answer. But the same moment she opened her mouth, their radio chirped to life. Mya seemed to deflate in relief and Carlos studied her for a moment before reaching for the radio, “This is Officer Reyes.” 

_ “Car 142 respond to a vehicular accident, intersection of S 1st and Cumberland. Be advised that witnesses say one of the involved drivers is likely under the influence.”  _

Carlos shared a grim look with Mya, who flipped on the lightbar and headed in the direction of the accident scene, “10-4 dispatch, car 142 en route.” He replaced the radio and turned to Mya, “we’re finishing this discussion later.” 

“Whatever you say, partner.” 

“I mean it, Mya.” 

“So an accident, think you’ll get to see your better half?” 

“You can try and change the subject all you want but I’m not going to forget.” 

She raised an eyebrow at him briefly before turning her gaze back to the road and he rolled his eyes, “No, he’s not working tonight. He actually should be at my place by now, he was going to try to make dinner.” 

“Did you check to make sure the fire extinguisher was full?” 

“And added a second one.” 

She laughed, but any humor faded at the sight of the accident scene as they turned the corner. 

Carlos felt dread building in his gut as Mya lost any hint of the playful manner of just a second ago, “Shit,” she said instead, voice low as she slowed their car to a stop at the edge of the scene. 

There was a car pinned to the telephone pole on the corner of the intersection. The front end looked relatively fine but the back was a mess. It looked like the other vehicle had come through the intersection at high speed, striking the back of the other car and pinning it to the pole. Carlos grimaced as he climbed out of the cruiser and got a better look. Hopefully no one had been in the backseat; they would have to be lucky to have survived that. 

And the driver of the other car was standing outside his car looking perfectly fine if a bit intoxicated, of course. 

He turned to Mya as she met him outside their car, “Do you want the drunk or the victim?” 

“You took the drunk last time so I guess it’s my turn.” 

“Let me know if you need me.” 

“Please,” she scoffed, “I can handle this dude.” 

He shook his head fondly as she rolled her eyes and they jogged off in their separate directions. He reached the driver’s window and leaned in, giving the man a quick once over. 

“Sir,” he asked, “are you hurt anywhere?” 

The driver shook his head forcefully, “I’m fine, just some cuts and bruises. My passenger though, I’m an uber driver…” 

Carlos felt the dread building as his fears were confirmed.

“Okay sir sit tight, I’m going to go around and see if I can get a better look. The fire department should be here soon and they’ll get you out real quick.” 

The driver nodded and Carlos gave him a quick, small smile before he headed to the rear window, carefully brushing glass shards out of the way so he could lean in. He was about to ask the same questions, but the sight before him stole the words and his breath from him. 

There was someone in the backseat but it wasn’t just anyone. It was a very familiar someone in a familiar yellow hoodie. 

“TK?” he asked, voice breaking. He got no response. He tugged on the door desperately but couldn’t get it to budge. 

He swallowed before trying again, “Ty? Can you hear me?” 

There were a million sounds surrounding him and not one of them mattered. The only one that did matter, the only voice he needed to hear, stayed silent. He couldn’t even get close enough to check for a pulse even as his heart clenched at the very thought of needing to. He knew he had been staring for too long, he needed to keep moving. He needed to do something, anything. He needed to help TK. 

He couldn’t lose him — not now, not ever. 

With effort, he pulled his gaze away and glanced around. Mya had cuffed the other driver and was loading him into the back of the cruiser. He called out to her, hoping she didn’t notice the change in his voice. Her eyes found him and even from a distance the despair in his expression must have been clear because her expression shifted and she hurried over. 

“Carlos, what—” 

But he stepped aside so she could see into the car, clutching the roof of the car for support. She took a look inside and he could pinpoint the moment she identified the trapped figure. She turned to him; expression grim and voice soft, “Carlos…” 

“We need to get to him,” he said again, hoping his voice was steadier than it sounded to his own ears, “I couldn’t get the door open.” 

“Okay,” Mya said calmly, “we’ll try it together. I’ll use the handle, you grab the doorframe. On 3, we pull.” 

Carlos nodded and followed her instructions, putting everything he had into it. Finally, after a few tries, the door gave and they were able to wrench it open. Carlos was in the car in a flash, disregarding the shattered glass crunching beneath him as he moved towards TK, reaching for his neck, feeling for a pulse. 

_ Please don’t let him be dead, please.  _

The thought was repeated like a mantra in his head, over and over again like a desperate prayer. 

The moments it took to find the right spot, for him to feel the tell-tale thrum of life in the familiar neck before him seemed to last forever but eventually — finally — he felt it. A pulse; strong and steady. 

He released the breath he had been holding and turned to Mya, “he’s alive, pulse is steady.” 

The relief evident on his partner’s face was nearly as palpable as his own, “Okay. See if you can wake him up and maybe give him a once over, I’ll go handle the rest of the scene and notify whatever crew shows up. Just stay with him.” 

“Are you…” 

“Carlos,” she interrupted him, voice firm and leaving no room for argument, “stay with him. He needs you and I can handle the rest on my own.” 

He gave her a grateful smile that she returned before squeezing his arm and disappearing back into the chaos of the scene. 

Carlos turned back to the crumpled figure beside him. He reached out a tender hand, carefully running it through TK’s hair, looking for any sign of a head injury. His hand found something wet on the side of his head closest to the door and he pulled it away to find blood. He moved closer, careful not to jostle TK any more than necessary, and located the source; a long but relatively shallow laceration on the side of his head. 

“How do you keep getting yourself into these situations, babe?” Carlos asked quietly, more to himself than anything else. 

“Is he going to be okay?” 

Carlos nearly jumped — he had quite forgotten about the driver in the face of what he had found in the backseat. He looked back over at the driver who had managed to twist enough to get a better look at TK’s predicament. Carlos shrugged but pulled his professionalism back over his countenance, “it’s hard to say with him trapped right now. The fact that he’s not conscious isn’t a good sign, but the way he’s trapped it’s too hard to see what might be wrong. I’m just hoping AFD gets here soon.” 

The driver nodded before studying Carlos, “You know him, don’t you?” 

Carlos gave him a startled look and the driver simply rolled his eyes, “please, I’ve been stuck in this car. I can hear you back there.” 

“Yeah, I do.” 

“Are you his boyfriend?” 

Carlos looked up sharply, never sure how to respond to that. The driver raised his hands in placation, “No judgment, it’s just if you are, he was talking about you right before we crashed.” 

Carlos deflated, turning back to TK, “he was?” 

“Yeah, said he wanted to surprise you by making a dinner that was actually edible.” 

Carlos laughed at that, despite everything, “he’s a man of many talents but unfortunately, I don’t think cooking will ever be one of them.” 

“Seems like he likes you a whole lot too,” the driver noted, watching as Carlos ran a hand through TK’s hair. 

“That’s good,” Carlos said softly, “because I like him a whole lot too.” 

Any further conversation was interrupted by TK stirring. Carlos waited with bated breath, watching him anxiously as he slowly blinked open his eyes. “TK?” he asked softly.

“Carlos?” The word was slurred and quiet, but it was in TK’s voice and Carlos was certain he had never heard anything more beautiful. 

“Yeah Ty, I’m here. Can you tell me what hurts?” 

TK tried to push himself up but abruptly fell back against the window with a hiss of pain, “Everything?” 

Carlos smiles sympathetically, “I believe you, but anything that hurts more than the rest?” 

TK considered for a bit before answering, “my head, and my ribs.” He prodded a bit at his chest before wincing, “definitely a few either broken or fractured on the right side.” 

Carlos watched as TK placed a hand on his chest as he took a breath, wincing with pain and then letting out a breathy curse. He met Carlos’s anxious expression and explained, “might be flail chest too.” 

“Flail chest?” 

“When part of the rib cage — usually 3 or more ribs — breaks and becomes  detached from the rest of the chest wall.”

Carlos’s eyes widened, “That sounds bad.” 

“It’s not ideal,” TK agreed, “but as long as I am careful not to jostle it too much I should be fine until we can get to a hospital, as long as that’s soon. Other than that I’m just kind of one giant bruise.” 

“Well, Mya’s in charge so I am sure help will get here soon if she has anything to say about it.” 

TK gave him a weak, strained smile before glancing around, “is everyone else okay?” 

He looked towards the driver’s seat where the man in question smiled and gave a small wave, “I’m good, just trapped. Mostly worried about you, even more so since you said all that stuff. You a doctor? Med student?”

TK shook his head, “Firefighter.” 

“Guess you’re pretty familiar with car accidents then, huh?” 

“Yeah, but usually from the other side. I kind of prefer it that way.” 

“Can’t say I blame you.” 

TK smiled at him before turning back to Carlos, “what about the other driver?” 

“He’s feeling no pain and has been escorted to the back of our squad car by Officer Esquilin.” 

“Great,” TK deadpanned, “just my luck.” 

“Yeah,” Carlos agreed with a sigh, “it kind of is, isn’t it?” 

TK smiled at him and then closed his eyes as grimaced in pain, exhaling carefully. Carlos reached out a hand but let it fall, not sure where to touch the other man that would provide comfort and not more pain. Eventually, he opened his eyes and met Carlos’s gaze. 

“ **It hurts** ,” he admitted, voice low and weak and Carlos’s heart ached to hear it. He reached out again, gently grasping the hand resting at his side and giving it a comforting squeeze,  “I’m sure it does, but we’re going to get you out of here. I can hear the fire engine now.” 

_ And not a moment too soon, _ he thought to himself as the familiar sound of a fire engine approaching cut through the evening. 

Outside the car he could hear the flurry of activity as whichever crew had been called arrived and went about the process of gathering gear and getting set up. Carlos stayed by TK’s side the entire time, clasping his hand in his own, “just focus on me,” he told him, “help is on the way.” 

He was so focused on TK he didn’t hear the approaching footsteps until they were directly behind him. 

“Reyes?” 

The voice is familiar but not one Carlos had been expecting to hear. He turned sharply to see Judd Ryder leaning into the backseat. 

“Judd?” 

“Yeah, we’re going to need you to get out so we can help them. We’ve got it from here.” 

“Is the rest of the 126 team here?” he hoped desperately that they were not. As much as their presence would be a comfort and he knows they would move heaven and earth to help TK, it would be far kinder for them to never have to deal with this. 

“No, I’m covering for a buddy at the 124. His wife just had a baby so a bunch of us took his shifts for the next few weeks. Still gonna need you to move, kid.” 

Carlos swallowed, not sure how to break the news, but he was saved the trouble by TK tuning back into the conversation, “Judd? What’re doing here?” 

Though his voice was weak, it was undeniably TK and Judd froze. He looked at Carlos who shook his head. What was there to say? There was no explanation for this. Judd grimaced and turned his attention back to TK. 

“Shit kid, you really got yourself into it this time, didn’t you? Just hold tight brother, we’re gonna get you out of there.” 

“Kay,” it was weak, far weaker than it had been a minute ago, and it filled Carlos’s heart with dread. 

Judd took a deep, wavering breath before meeting Carlos’s eyes one more time and pulling himself back out of the car, heading back to the captain to report. 

“Hang tight Ty,” Carlos told him softly, “this is almost over, I promise.” 

“I’m fine Carlos, I’m not worried.” 

“You’re a liar, but thanks for trying.” 

TK’s answering smile, strained as it was, lifted the slightest amount of pressure from his heart. Two members of the 124 came over to free the driver, who looked back at them before climbing out, “hang in there kid would ya? I’d hate to have ‘dead passenger’ on my record.”

“If I survive this I’ll give you a 5-star review.”

The driver laughed appreciatively before nodding to Carlos and following the firemen away from the scene. Now that there was no other civilian involved, all the focus turned to TK and doing whatever they could to get him out. 

Judd appeared at the far edge of the window by TK, “still hanging in there kid?” 

But TK didn’t respond, he was too focused on the flurry of activity outside the wrecked car, “wouldn’t it make more sense to approach from the other side so there would be more clearance between the car and the pole?” 

“Hey, no backseat rescuing,” Judd chided, “you just relax and let us handle it. Besides, you’re concussed, you don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

But even as he spoke he was studying the scene and he stepped away to speak with the young kid who was setting up the equipment. As Carlos watched the kid nodded and gathered his things before moving to the other end of the car. He glanced back at TK, who was grinning, “I was right, wasn’t I?” 

Carlos chuckled fondly and shook his head, running his hand through TK’s hair again, “Judd’s right, you just need to focus on keeping still and letting us know if something doesn’t feel right when we get you moving. He’s got the rest of it under control, he’ll make sure things are done to the 126’s standards.” 

No more than a few moments later Judd popped back up at the window, “They’re ready to get started and they want you out, Reyes.” 

“I’m not going anywhere,” he said firmly, looking back down at TK, who was still clutching his hand like a lifeline. 

“That’s what I told them,” Judd agreed, “so just do your best to stay out of the way. Last thing we need is two victims here.” 

Carlos nodded and Judd turned to wave to one of the other firemen, who started up the jaws. It was a painstaking process, the car bent and twisted as it was, but eventually, they found the right spot and the door began to give. Carlos turned to smile at TK — they were one step closer to having him free — when he noticed that his face had gone pale. 

“Judd!” he called out to the firefighter before reaching out to examine TK, to see if he could find the problem, “something’s wrong!”

He could hear shouting before the noise of the jaws stopped and Judd peered back into the window, expression tight. Carlos was still studying TK. 

“Ty,” he asked, “can you tell me what’s wrong?” 

TK shook his head but gestured at his chest before trying to take a gulp of air but only ending up with a grimace of pain for his efforts. Carlos realized what he was trying to say in an instant: he was having trouble breathing. 

Judd cursed and leaned back out, calling for the paramedics. His eyes met Carlos’s even as he moved, “I think his lung is punctured, we’re going to need to do this quick and dirty now so we can get him out and get him intubated if need be.” He shifted his gaze down to TK, “this is not going to be pleasant brother, but we’re going to get you the help you need ASAP, alright?” 

TK nodded at him and squeezed Carlos’s hand harder. Carlos swallowed and squeezed back, desperate to offer whatever comfort he could. 

The next minute passed in a blur. Once they had found a gap they used it to wrench the door open as far as it would go before the paramedics approached to get him prepped and out, quickly but carefully. Carlos climbed out after them, able to step over the seat and console that had pinned TK in before, and joined them, hovering right at the edge; unwilling to get in the way, but unable to stray too far. Not when TK was hurt, not when it was like this. 

As he hovered, he heard the paramedic captain curse. “It’s a punctured lung,” he confirmed as he pulled the stethoscope away and relayed instructions to his team, “must have happened when the door shifted, causing the ribs to move and hit the lung. Breath sounds are diminishing, we need to get him out of here fast.” 

Everything after that was white noise to Carlos as he found an open space on the ground near TK’s head and kneeled, careful to keep out of the way. He saw one of the paramedics turn to him in the corner of his eye, likely intending to tell him to get lost, but Judd appeared at his side and shook his head. 

Satisfied he wasn’t about to be forcibly removed with Judd standing sentry behind him, Carlos leaned down, moving closer to TK. 

“Hang in there Ty, please. They’re going to get you help, you just need to hang on a little longer, I promise.”

TK’s eyes met his and though they were clouded in pain, there wasn’t any fear in them. As they held each other’s gaze TK slid his hand across the ground, closer to Carlos who grasped it with his own, intertwining their fingers and squeezing it tightly. 

“It’s going to be okay,” he repeated but now it was less of a promise and more of a prayer. 

TK smiled at him, soft and reassuring, but his eyes began to drift shut. 

“No you don’t, stay with me Ty!” Carlos said desperately, the fear that he had been just barely keeping at bay rushing up to engulf him without a second thought. TK’s eyes opened again but Carlos could tell they wouldn’t stay open for long. He leaned closer, lips practically at TK’s ear, “ **Stay alive** ,” he begged, “ **please** . I can’t lose you.” 

“Breaths are fading,” the paramedic captain announced, “we need to move him  _ now _ .” 

Carlos watched with horror as TK’s eyes slid shut once more and didn’t reopen, no matter how much he pleaded. He watched as the paramedic team scooped him onto a gurney and whisked him to the ambulance, two of them working desperately on CPR as the other rushed around to the driver’s seat. 

The ambulance pulled away and Carlos felt as if his very soul had gone with it. He was still here at the accident scene but couldn’t seem to ground himself. He glanced around, taking in all the bits and pieces of the commotion, but most of it just seemed like noise. 

He saw Judd speaking to the 124 Captain before stepping to the side and pulling out his phone with a grim expression and somehow Carlos knew just who he was calling. He looked away to see Mya heading towards him, expression cautious. 

“Carlos?” she asked, but he knew there was so much more hidden in the two syllables of his name.  _ How are you _ and  _ how is he _ and  _ what happened _ all went unsaid between the two partners. 

He didn’t have an answer to any of them, so he just shook his head. She nodded before reaching out her hand to place it gently on his arm, where she gave him a comforting squeeze. 

“How about we drop Mr. Inebriated off to be processed and then I’ll get you to the hospital. I’ll call Sarge on the way, let her know.” 

Carlos nodded. He knew Mya was worried for him, he knew he should find some way to reassure her, but he had nothing. He felt like a shell; a husk completely cleaned out by the panic and fear and dread that had weighed so heavily on him since he first saw TK in the car. He was drained and the only thing keeping him moving forward was the desperate hope and need for TK to be okay. 

If TK was okay, then everything else would be fine. 

* * *

Carlos looked up from his phone when a figure plopped into the chair across from him, “hi stranger.” 

“It’s only been a week,” Carlos objected with a roll of his eyes. 

“Yeah and I always get stuck with the weirdos when you’re out. Thank god it’s not often.” There was companionable silence between the two partners as Mya studied him before speaking, “how are you doing?” 

“Me? I’m fine.” 

“Why do I not believe that?” 

Carlos sighed, “It’s been a lot,” he admitted, “and a very long week. But I’m okay, really.” 

“I’ve been worried about you,” she admitted, “we all have been.” 

Carlos opened his mouth to respond, but the arrival of another person interrupted the conversation. 

“Sorry about that,” TK said as he settled back into the seat at Carlos’s side, sliding his phone back into his pocket, “my dad just wanted to check in. He’s still not convinced I should be allowed to stand up, let alone leave the house.”

“I can’t say I blame him. You really had me worried there for a little bit.”

“Aw Mya, you do care.” 

“That is a vicious rumor that I will deny at all costs.”

He laughed and she grinned at him before softening, “how are you feeling?” 

“I’m good, really. A little sore and I won’t be running any marathons anytime soon, but fine. Like I keep telling this one,” he says, shooting a pointed look at Carlos, “and my dad.”

Mya shrugs, “I believe you, but I can’t say I blame them. It was pretty close there for a while. Only you could be on the verge of death and back on your feet a week later Strand, I swear.” 

“It’s all the practice,” Carlos said dryly, causing Mya to laugh and TK to roll his eyes. 

“Judd is talking about bubble wrap,” he tells Mya. 

“And we looked into it. It would be pricey, but worth it,” Carlos declared. 

“So Mya,” TK said, turning pointedly away from Carlos, who smirked, “who is this girl you are so insistent we meet?” 

Carlos shook his head fondly at the change of subject but didn’t push, instead joining TK in looking at Mya intently. 

Mya rolled her eyes at the pair of them before taking a sip of her coffee, “Her name is Alanna, and I just wanted to see how you guys got on with her.” 

Now Carlos raised an eyebrow and gave her a calculating look, “that sounds like some commitment territory Esquilin, you must really like her.” 

“I do,” Mya admitted, “I know we’ve only been on 4 dates so far, but we talk all the time and I just really enjoy being with her in a way I haven’t enjoyed being with anyone else. Plus, you know, other stuff.” 

TK and Carlos shared a knowing look and a smile as Mya barreled on, “It just seems really fast so I guess I wanted a second opinion? And to see how she fits in with my friends.” 

“We’re your friends?” TK asked with a grin.

“Unfortunately the closet ones I have.” 

Now that the topic of Alanna had been broached, not even their usual banter seemed to bring out the playful side of Mya they were accustomed to. She kept biting her lip and tapping her fingers against her mug as she shot repeated glances at the door. 

“What are you worried about?” TK asked her eventually.

“I’m not worried,” she responded quickly, to which TK only raised an eyebrow. 

“You’re practically a poster child for anxiety at the moment trust me; it takes one to know one. What’s up?” 

Mya was quiet for a few moments before she explained, “I like her a lot, but I can’t help but think that maybe we are rushing into things, that maybe we are moving too fast.” 

“There’s no one ‘right way’ to start a relationship,” Carlos reminded her gently. “I mean, look at us — you know what a mess we were getting started. We didn’t do anything the way we ‘should have’ but I think we’re pretty solid, right?” 

“If by solid you mean, ‘nauseatingly perfect,’ then yeah. You are.”

“Then if you like this girl and she likes you, it doesn’t matter if it seems too fast or how many dates you’ve been on, all that matters is that you care about each other and want to try and start something together.” 

The look Carlos was giving Mya was sincere and she gave him a soft smile in return, reaching across the table to squeeze his hand in thanks. She looked to TK a moment later, “You know, you’re pretty lucky to have found this one. Even if he is my partner and I am therefore required to give him shit, he’s pretty great.” 

TK turned to look at Carlos, who met his gaze with a matching smile. 

“He is something, isn’t he?” he agreed. 

Mya smiled at the pair of them, but before she could say anything something behind them caught her attention and her smile grew even wider.

“She’s here,” she told them, rising from her chair, “I’m going to go grab her and get her a drink. Play nice when she gets here, please?” 

“As if we could ever do anything but.” 

Mya rolled her eyes and swatted lightly at TK’s head as she walked by, heading towards the blonde woman with a warm smile just inside the doorway of the coffee shop. 

“Can you believe that was us not too long ago?” TK asked as they watched Mya greet her date with a kiss on the cheek.

Carlos shook his head, “that was never really us. We didn't exactly go about this in the usual way. By the time we got to awkward dates with friends we already knew each other’s friends and each other. Kind of an interesting parallel though — you were on medical leave then too.” 

“Is that supposed to be a jab about my ‘danger magnetism’ Reyes?” 

“It is. Interesting term, by the way. A TK Strand original?” 

“A Judd Ryder one, patent pending.” 

“Of course,” Carlos agreed with a nod. His teasing tone faded as he studied TK, reaching out to run a gentle hand across the still healing cut to the side of his head. The stitches had been removed a few days ago, but he knew with painful certainty that underneath TK’s button-up was another row of sutures, a souvenir from the surgery to piece the broken bits of his ribs back together. Soon these would fade just as the scar on his collarbone had and soon they would just be another reminder of what almost was; of the all-consuming fear that they might have lost this, that Carlos could have lost him. 

“What are you thinking?” TK asked him softly, studying Carlos’s expression. 

“How much trouble you are.” 

“Is that so?” 

“It is, but you’re worth it.” 

TK’s face broke out into a wide and beaming grin, “Oh really?”

“Yeah,” Carlos agreed, “you’re worth everything to me.” 

**Author's Note:**

> Come find me on [tumblr](https://marjansmarwani.tumblr.com/)


End file.
